US drone attack kills 4 in S Waziristan

Missiles hit a house in the Shin Warsak area, wounding two others. PHOTO: AFP/FILE

MIRANSHAH: A US drone strike in a restive Pakistani tribal area on Friday killed at least four suspected militants, local security officials said.

The unmanned aircraft fired two missiles, hitting a house in the Shin Warsak area of South Waziristan, a tribal district, wounding two other people, security officials told AFP.

“Two missiles were fired at the house of a tribal elder where local militants were present,” one security official told AFP on the condition of anonymity as he is not authorised to speak to media.

“Four dead bodies have been recovered and two are injured,” the official added.

The CIA operates a covert drone programme which targets suspected militants in countries like Pakistan.

It’s possibly the United States’ worst-kept secret even though it has opened up a debate about the legality of international state-sponsored killing of adversaries.

The United States is essentially deploying aerial robots to wage war along the inaccessible border region between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The drones conduct intelligence and reconnaissance missions and fire missiles at the enemy.

Drone “pilots” at CIA headquarters in Virginia move joy sticks around as they watch live video feeds of militants entering compounds, moving along winding mountain roads or planting bombs in northwest Pakistan, which President Barack Obama has called “the most dangerous place in the world”.

US officials have described drones as a very effective tool for eliminating high-value enemies in northwest Pakistan, where human intelligence is hard to come by because anyone who provides it risks the wrath of militants.

Drone attacks against foot soldiers are useless. You can’t annihilate the enemy through drones, and attrition will take decades. The difference between US army and the great European armies of 17-20th century is evident. Looking at US struggling everywhere, one has to admire the British colonial armies which conquered quarter of the world with handful of men.

@faraz,
I too wonder about this point you made about British colonial armies of 17th to 20ths century ..No google no planes no fast cruiser ships and look at colonial india 20 to 30 different language speaking multi ethnic subcontinent people and still they managed to rule us all .. This american special forces or the CIA with all satellites and drones is losing war against taliban who is just a fellow with a bomb or rpg or a ak 47 .. Some body should ask this question when Panetta comes to pakistan ..

The drones are flown by US Air-force drone controllers at an air-force base in Ohio. Every strike has dozens of people involved yet the overall effect fails to stop terrorism as it does not attack the root of the problem. Innocent people get killed and the PK government, who could stop the strikes allows it to happen. That shows how little the PK leaders care about people who live in these areas. The lack of schools, health care, jobs, judicial systems, epidemic corruption is the cause of terrorism. When you have nothing to lose and PK’s government values your life so little, then why not be a terrorist? If I lived their I’d think revolution. Is a terrorist not also a revolutionary too? Is the Taliban better or worse or maybe the same as the local government. For local government to succeed, for terrorism to cease, you have to give people something to live for, other than living in mud huts waiting to be bombed by US drones or 16 yr. old Taliban vest bombers.